Former Ottawa Hospital vice-president Peggy Taillon walked away from her job and spent almost a year in Kenya trying to convince their government to let her adopt a child as a single parent.

Now that she's succeeded, she's continuing her work in the African country.

Taillon is working with her charity HERA to find homes for orphans in a local village, helping local women lead the way.

"The tribal elders have certainly recognized their contribution and they are now a go-to group," she said. "They are a group that gets called to meetings, they are taken seriously because there is a recognition that without these ten women the village would be sliding backward."